Montevideo, July 21 (teleSUR-RHC)-- Uruguay is expected to welcome 117 Syrian families by the end of the year, officials said on Monday.
The families will be relocated from refugee camps in Lebanon, which is struggling to accommodate more than a million Syrian refugees. "The national government will honor its commitment and not go into a humanitarian default," Foreign Minister Rodolfo Nin Novoa announced Monday. He added that Syria is "suffering a brutal humanitarian crisis" and the refugee families are "living a real hell on earth."
In October, 42 Syrians were relocated to Uruguay as part of a program launched by the government of former President Jose Mujica. Then, Uruguay became the first country in Latin America to launch a resettlement program for Syrians.
Other countries in the region, such as Brazil, Colombia and Argentina, have followed suit and introduced similar programs.
Since the civil war broke out in Syria in 2011, more than 4 million Syrians have sought refuge abroad, the largest number in almost 25 years, the United Nations has said.
Most of those refugees are located in Turkey, Lebanon and Jordan, where they suffer from poor living conditions and are seeking to be relocated to other countries in Europe and the West. However, despite having the resources, many countries in the Europe and the West have been reluctant to accept refugees and asylum seekers. Also, rich Arab countries in the Persian Gulf have never, since the beginning of the conflict, offered to welcome Syrians.
Therefore, despite not being as rich as Europe or the oil-rich Arab countries, nations in Latin America have taken the initiative to help reduce the suffering of Syrians.
